In a Facebook post, he wrote: “Dear friends … today on 21 October 2011, one year anniversary of the European Court of Human Rights verdict in the case of illegality of Moscow Pride bans, I decided to resign from the positions of the head of Russian LGBT Human Rights Project GayRussia.ru and head of Moscow Pride Organizing Committee. From midnight 21 October 2011 in Moscow and up to the decision on the new leadership, Project GayRussia.ru will be headed by Nikolay Baev and Moscow Pride Organizing Committee by Alexander Naumchik.”

While Alekseev didn’t give details on why he’s chosen to retire, he’s had a hard road since taking up his role in 2005. He’s been lauded by the international LGBT community, but back home he’s been beaten, arrested and claims he was kidnapped by Russian security, who used his phone to send fake text messages recanting his beliefs.

We hope others take up the fight in Russia and that Alekseev takes a well-deserved vacation.

Tom

We as an LGBT community should be ashamed of ourselves. We are divided, selfish and greedy. All of major LGBT rights non profit groups have millions in disposal but we do not help our brothers and sisters in other countries that need our help. LGBT in Middle East Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Africa are living in oppression, but we don’t care about them because they don’t look like us and they don’t speak our language. It is much more convenient and profitable to bitch and moan about Fox News, Fred Phelps and sell cheesy “legalize Gay” T-shirts then actually unite, rally together to help our people in other countries like Russia or Iran who are being discriminated against, beaten, abused and worse–hanged.